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Greater Baltimore Medical Center Joins Regional Electronic Health Data Network

BALTIMORE, Md. – May 24, 2006 – Greater Baltimore Medical Center has joined the Maryland/D.C. Collaborative for Healthcare Information Technology, a regional coalition dedicated to developing a statewide electronic health data exchange.  This network will allow hospitals, physicians and health insurers to seamlessly transmit medical records.

Among the benefits to patients of a regional electronic network are improved safety and quality of care; elimination of unnecessary office visits and tests; and reduced costs of care.  In addition, patients will have a greater opportunity to participate in their own care management planning.

The electronic network could also allow parents to access electronic records of their child’s immunizations; individuals to transfer their personal medical histories with them when they move; physicians to compare care management of patients with similar conditions in different hospitals; and doctors to access a patient’s medical history even if they arrive at a hospital unconscious.

Hospitals will benefit through reduced clinical errors, duplicative testing, and lengths of stay; improved treatment outcomes; enhanced disease management capabilities; improved tracking and collection of quality performance data; and eliminating costs associated with transferring medical records between facilities.

“We are excited to be part of this ambitious undertaking,” said Tressa Springmann, GBMC’s chief information officer. “We recognize the need to unite the region’s health care providers under a common mission and strive to provide medical care and service of the highest quality to each patient while effectively utilizing information technology.”  Springmann, of Glenwood in Howard County, has been appointed to a one-year term on the board of directors for the Collaborative.

The Collaborative’s goal is to establish a Regional Health Information Organization (RHIO) infrastructure linking all components in the Maryland/D.C. healthcare delivery chain – physician offices, hospitals, clinics, labs, imaging centers, nursing homes, payers and patients. 

"This will enhance communication of patient information, quality of care, patient safety, disease management capabilities, clinical and administrative cost reductions, and bio-surveillance/early detection preparedness,” said Victor Plavner, M.D., chairman of the Maryland/D.C. Collaborative for Healthcare Information Technology.

Dr. Plavner welcomed GBMC’s affiliation as evidence that the group is moving toward its goal of putting in place an effective, regional health data exchange network.  “GBMC brings an insightful understanding of health information technology and the obstacles we face in transforming our healthcare system from a paper-based enterprise to a progressive, electronic model.”

About The Maryland/D.C. Collaborative for Healthcare Information Technology

The Collaborative (www.collaborativeforhit.org) was founded in May of 2004 as a non-profit entity. Members of the Collaborative include Johns Hopkins Medicine, University of Maryland Medicine and MedStar Health; CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield and AETNA; numerous community hospitals and a number of community physician group practices. Supporting organizations include the Maryland and D.C. Medical Societies, the Maryland Hospital Association, and the regions leading imaging groups, Advanced Radiology and American Radiology Services.

About GBMC
GBMC includes Greater Baltimore Medical Center (GBMC), Central Maryland’s leading community hospital; Hospice of Baltimore, which provides comfort and care to patients with life-limiting illnesses; the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Community Health Center, which offers comprehensive health and family services to the residents of East Baltimore; and the GBMC Foundation, which supports the GBMC mission by managing fundraising efforts.  The 300-bed Medical Center, located on a beautiful suburban campus, serves nearly 22,000 inpatients annually and provides approximately 50,000 emergency room visits. For more information, go to www.gbmc.org.

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